Finding a Home
by Valorie818
Summary: TJ just wanted to die so I can be rid of all of his pain. Steve just wanted to forget his past and move on. But fate had other plans in mind.


**A/N: So this little plot bunny popped into my head and it wouldn't leave me alone. When I started to write the words just flowed from my fingers which hasn't happened in a while. I wanted to wait until I had a few chapters done first before I posted this but I was too excited, which always happens. Anyway I hope you guys enjoy it.**

 **Beginnings**

The night was cool and refreshing for my walk. This neighborhood was new to me because I wanted a change of scenery, so I had hopped on my motorcycle and drove to the other side of town. The street I was currently walking on was filled with really huge homes. There were nice homes back in the 1940's but none of those were as nice as these homes. The sidewalk was lined with fancy lampposts that had flowers planted around it. Being this far away from the city allowed one to see all the stars in the sky. Maybe not as much as one would see if one lived further way from all the light pollution but it was enough to make the sky beautiful.

I was still staring into the night sky when I heard someone's voice in the distance. It was hard to pick up what was being said so I continued forward but at a hurried pace. After I walked several more feet down the street I hear it again but this time I could understand the words. It was someone calling for help. Jogging forward I start looking for the trouble when I smelled the carbon monoxide, well more like the byproduct of the fuel from a car.

"Someone please help!"

I didn't hesitate as I ran up to the garage door and forcefully pushed the door up. Not only was it shocking to see someone trying to pull an unconscious person from the car but it was also shocking to see that it was Elaine Barrish. She was also staring at me with shock but soon came to reality. "Please help me get him out of here."

Quickly, we got the unconscious man out of the car and into the drive way. That's when the security agents came outside. Elaine turned to him. "Please call an ambulance."

One of them instantly pulled a phone out but the other one came over. "Do you want to move him to a more covered area so no one can see him?"

Elaine hesitated for a second before she nodded her head. The agent stepped forward to pick him up but I stopped him. "I can do it by myself." One of the few things that the serum did to me was make me stronger and lifting him up would be extremely easy. I carefully moved my arms under him and easily lifted him. When I went to check how he was doing I noticed his face and I stopped in my tracks. This man looked exactly like Bucky Barnes. My heart did a painful lurch at the memory of my dead friend and tears threatened to fall.

I don't know how long I stood there before Elaine brought my thoughts into focus. "Is there a problem? Do you need some help?"

She looked like she was about to come closer to lend a hand but I shook my head and started walking toward the house. I didn't have any words to say at the moment because I was still trying to process what was going on. Not only did I happen to be by when Elaine needed help, but also the person who was trying to commit suicide looked exactly like my Bucky. This was all too much of a coincidence.

It didn't take long for us to move into the house and I set the Bucky lookalike on the couch. I stepped back so that Elaine could be next to him and brush back his hair. A flashback of a dirty rundown apartment filled with laughter and long nights of Bucky helping me through the many sicknesses that I had. Turning my head away I tried to stop the painful memories from flooding my mind but it was difficult. He was the rock I clung to after my mother died and when he died I didn't have anything to cling to. I choked back the sobs that threatened to come out because I didn't want them to ask questions. Questions that I am not ready to answer right now. Slowly I turned back to the people in front of me. They didn't seem to have noticed my reaction.

A few minutes later the ambulance arrived. They came through the door and walked over to the man. "Ma'am, I'm going to ask you to step aside so that we can help him."

Elaine nods her head and gets up. The second EMT kneels next to him and starts firing questions to Elaine, "What is the patient's name?"

"Thomas Hammond."

"Was he awake when you found him?"

"No, he was unconscious."

"Did you find him on this couch?"

"No, we pulled him from the car and brought him inside." Elaine chewed on her thumb nail. Probably nervous that she might have done something wrong.

But the EMT didn't seem to care, "Does he have any allergies?"

"No."

"Has he had any previous attempts at suicide or had problems with drugs?"

Elaine had tears falling now, "This is the first time he tried to kill himself but he has had problems with drugs and alcohol."

She seemed pained to reveal this information. While they were asking questions, they took Thomas's vitals, strapped him to a gurney, and hooked him up to a heart monitor.

Hearing that Thomas has had previous problems with drugs and knowing that he tried to kill himself made me realize that maybe he was struggling with some depression. The same thing that I went through after I woke up from the ice and realized everyone I knew was dead. Maybe I could help him through the pain. Wait, what am I thinking. I don't know him or this family and why would they want me around after this anyway. I would just be a reminder of this horrible night of their lives.

Soon they had Thomas outside and placed into the back of the ambulance. One of the EMT turns to Elaine. "You can ride in the back if you want."

The security agent that called 911 protested, "I don't think that's a good idea madam. We can follow right behind the ambulance."

"Clark, I don't want to argue about this. I'm riding in the back with my son. You guys can follow behind." Elaine went to step into the back of the ambulance when she stopped and turned to me, "You can come too if you want to. He's a big fan of yours and I'm sure he wants to meet you."

I was just about to accept but then my phone rang. I pulled it out and saw a message from Fury. _Need you to come in. We have a mission._ I look back at Elaine, "I'm sorry but that was work."

Elaine nods her head and smiles, "I understand. Maybe after you're done saving the world you can stop by. We will be at the St. Johns Hospital when you are available. He will be under the name of James Michael."

"I will try to be there as soon as I can." I wait until the ambulance and SUVs turn the corner before I jog back to my motorcycle.

/

The sound of the motorcycle drowned out the sound around them. Even though I had better hearing it was still hard to hear anything this close to the engine. Natasha's voice came through my ear piece, "We are five minutes behind them."

This mission was high priority, which meant we had to work fast and efficiently. Someone took a very powerful weapon from SHIELD and I had to recover it with Natasha's help. The idiots didn't realize that it had a tracker on it and we were finally catching up to the signal. When the van was in site I detached my shield, threw it at the back tire, and then caught it as it rebounded back. The van swerved out of control for a little bit before it righted itself.

Normally that would have worked but these people were determined to get away. So my shield made quick work of the second back tire and the van finally swerved to the right and hit a tree. I hit the break and turned us back around until we were closer to the van. We quickly get off the bike but the driver recovered enough to pull out a gun. Bringing up my shield I moved forward until I could grab the gun from his weak grip and take out the driver while Natasha dealt with the unconscious passenger.

Natasha came around to the driver side, "Are you prepared for what's waiting for us in the back?"

I chuckle. "Not really, but let's get this over with so I can go home." Natasha and I walked to the back of the van. Before we opened the door we paused for a moment and met each other's eyes; trusting to help the other out. When we both looked ready Natasha nodded at me to opened the door. I flung it open and brought up my shield waiting for the gunfire to start but nothing happened.

"Shit!" Exclaimed Natasha and I lowered my shield. I looked into the back and saw that it was empty except for a duffle bag. The tracker was attached to the bag; I saw it flashing. "They must have known about the tracking device and then sent us on a wild goose chase."

"How did they know about the device and what was the weapon anyway?" Normally I didn't go on a mission without knowing all the details but this was a high priority mission so I went without asking questions. Now that this weapon was out in the world I needed to know what I was dealing with.

Natasha looked at me and shrugged her shoulders, "I don't know. I never ask questions." She squatted down next to the bag and unzipped it. It took me a second to process that it was a bomb and that it was about to go off in ten seconds. People always told me that when you are facing the possibility that you could die that your life flashes before your eyes. Well I can just say that they are liars. I didn't think about my life as I grabbed Natasha's arm and pulled her from the van. We ran as fast as we could while I counted down from ten. When I reached ten in my head, I turned us around and yell, "Jump." and we jumped behind the shield just as the bomb exploded. We got blasted back several feet before we landed on the ground.

I lay on the ground dazed for a second while I let the ringing and lightheadedness recede. I slowly sat up and moved over to Natasha to check on her. She took a little longer to recover but as soon as she was feeling better we stood up to look at the damage from the bomb. Miraculously the bike survived the blast and based on the damage to the surrounding area it wasn't as big of a bomb as I had expected. The goal of the bomb was to go off while we were still near the bag. I counted my blessings as Natasha called Fury to explain about the bomb and how we were outsmarted.

/

Several hours later, we were standing in front of Fury's desk while he debriefed us.

"…We knew something was off when there was no one in the back of the van except the duffle bag. That is when we discovered the bomb and got away as fast as we could." Natasha was better at explaining what happened then I was so I let her tell him.

Fury pinched the bridge of his nose. "I'm glad you two are okay but I hate the idea that this weapon is lost."

That reminded me. "What is this weapon anyway?"

Fury sighed and looked me in the eye. "A few years back someone found something really interesting in an archeological site. It was a box with some strange lettering but they couldn't open it without damaging it. Well the letterings were flagged in our system because they were the same ones that lead to where the tesseract was."

"Didn't you learn anything from the problem with the tesseract?" I knew where this was going because it happened with the tesseract and we all knew how that ended.

He waited patiently for my outburst to end before he continued. "After the troubles with the tesseract we tried to dispose of them but all of our attempts ended horribly so we decided to lock them away so no one can access them. Does that satisfy you?"

Now I felt guilty. "Yes, you can finish what you were saying."

Fury nodded. "Thank you. Anyway, when we finally acquired it we were able to find a way to open the box and what was inside was just as mysterious as the tesseract. They were small orbs; the size of marbles. When our scientists studied them, they found out that if they touched them with your bare hands then it was instant death. The only way to handle them was to build a special glove that you would attach an orb to the back of the hand and you could access the power that was in them."

"What kind of powers were they?" Natasha was just as curious as I was.

"There were five of them and they each had different powers. Each orb gives you the ability to control one of the elements. Earth, air, fire, water, and spirit."

"So you're saying that the person who stole this weapon could end up controlling this world." I had to make sure that I was following the story right.

Now Fury looked grave, "Essentially yes, if that is their goal."

I let out a heavy breath. This was really bad news. "What are we going to do now."

"I'm glad you asked. We can't do anything right now because we don't know where they are. I'm sending agents out to all of our suspects to try to get any information about it that they can. Once we have some, I'll send you and Natasha out to retrieve it."

Fury pulled out his phone and started sending out emails to set up a meeting. I don't like being benched during this situation but I was too well known to be able to go undercover.

We were dismissed and I made my way to the locker rooms so I could get out of my suit and into my street clothes. To get my mind off of this failed mission I decided to visit Thomas in the hospital. I was hoping he was doing well and maybe I could befriend him and help him through this.

/

The traffic was light so early in the morning so it didn't take long to get to St. Johns Hospital. The sunrise was beautiful this early in the morning and I couldn't believe I was still up. I made my way to the reception desk. The nurse behind the desk was looking down at a clipboard and didn't bother looking up, "I'm here to see James Michael."

"Are you a member of his family?"

She seemed to find her clipboard more important than a visitor, "Well no, but I was asked by his mom to come in."

"Well I am sorry but I can only allow famil…" she finally looked up at me and recognized me. She set down the clipboard and pulled out another one. After flipping through a couple pages she found the one she was looking for and read a few lines before looking back at me, "It looks like you're on the list of approved visitors. He's in room 211."

I smiled at her. "Thank you. You have a good day."

She smiled at me and wished the same thing for me before I went in search of room 211. When I found it, I nodded to the security detail and hesitantly walked in. Elaine was passed out in the chair next to Thomas's bed.

I must have been too loud because she startled wake and looked at Thomas first. When she saw that he was fine she looked around the room and noticed me, "Oh, Steve I'm so glad you made it and I'm glad you came back in one piece."

A laugh bubbled out of my lips before I knew it was happening, "Me too. It was a close one there." I rub the back of my head, feeling embarrassed.

A crease formed across her eyes. "Was it that dangerous?" Realizing my mistake, I put my hand over my face trying think about what to say to fix it. My missions were confidential and can't be talked about outside of someone with clearance. Before I had the chance to tell her that she beat me too it, "I'm sorry. Your work is probably confidential."

I smile, "Yeah, I'm sorry."

She waved her hand, "Don't worry about it. I understand having a job where things have to be confidential."

"I suppose you do. Sometimes I hate that because I wish I could talk about some of the things I have seen." I made myself comfortable in the other chair in the room.

Elaine relaxed back into her chair, "I understand that more than you think."

I laugh, "I believe that you do."

After that we got quiet and slowly my eyes started to droop.

/

 _Bucky was dangling from the handle of the broken train, "Hold on Bucky I won't let you fall." I reach out to grab him but his hand slips before I can reach him. I hear and see him fall to his death and I want to follow him down so I don't have to live without him. It was my sense of duty that forces me to pull myself back into the train and I lay down on my back. But the pain is too much and turn to the side. The tears turn into sobs as the reality of the situation finally hits me and I realize my friend is dead and I will never get to talk to him again. A hand on my arm turns me on my back again and Bucky is leaning over me, "Bucky! I am so glad that you are alive."_

 _The feeling of relief and happiness faded away by the look on Bucky's face, "You promised to not let me fall but you broke that promise." There was so much anger in his eyes that any response I had was stuck in my throat. Suddenly the anger in his eyes disappear and is replaced by something cold and dead. Bucky raised his hand and that is when I notice the knife but before I could stop it Bucky plunges the knife in my chest._

I jerked awake and lifted my hands in defense before I looked around the room not remembering where I was. When my eyes landed on Elaine all the memories from the last 24 hours came back and I remembered that I was in the hospital to see Thomas and I had fallen asleep. Now I was embarrassed, "Sorry I didn't mean to fall asleep on you." I wiped away the tears that had fallen while I was sleeping. That nightmare felt so real that it made me cry in my sleep.

Elaine smiled down at me, "I understand you had a long and eventful night. Plus, when was the last time you slept?"

I laughed. "Besides from a minute ago? Probably yesterday morning."

She patted me on the shoulder, "Well that's completely understandable. I didn't want to wake you but Thomas is awake and I thought you might want to officially meet him."

My eyes instantly snapped to the bed and I saw his eyes were open and looking at me. He blushed and looked down. "I always wanted to meet you but I didn't want it to be like this."

I stood up and walked over to the bed. "You don't have to feel embarrassed. People deal with things differently and sometimes people can't deal with things anymore so they think they have to end their lives to get away from it. That's why I am here; I want to help you."

He looked at me with disbelief but didn't say anything. Elaine excused herself. "I'm going to let you guys talk alone." As she walked by she looked at me and I could tell she was grateful by my offer.

Once the door was closed Thomas blasted me. "I don't need your help. I know my mother put you up to this and besides… how can you help me? You don't know what I've gone though." He had such fire in his eyes I thought I would catch on fire.

I knew I had to go slow with this. I moved the chair I was using to the other side of the bed and sat down. "For one, your mother didn't ask me to do this. She didn't even know I was going to offer to help you. Second, I understand more than you know."

He scoffed. "Yeah, right. Was your dad a president and were you forced to come out before you are ready? Plus, having reporters say such lies about you or stuff that is true but you didn't think people had a right to know. Then finally falling in love with the perfect guy but then have him take back all the loving words he said to you because he was scared of being outed. Have you had to deal with all that?" He was challenging me and thinking that he had it worse.

I waited patiently for him to slow his breathing before I continued, "I didn't say I went through the same stuff as you, just that I could understand. After I woke up from being in that ice, I realized that 70 years had passed and all the people I knew were dead. But what made it worse was that I was still grieving the loss of my best friend. I am sure you have read about him." When he nodded, I was confused. "Have you seen a picture of him?"

He shook his head. "I only looked up stuff about you on the internet and all the photos were bad quality. Then the Smithsonian made that exhibit about you just recently and I haven't had the chance to go in and see it."

Nodding my head, I continued. "Well, as you know, he fell off a train on our mission and onto the rocks below. I tried to get drunk but the downfall of the serum is that my metabolism is fast so I burned it off before I could feel the effects. It was shortly after that I had my last mission; the one that put me in the ice. So I was still grieving his death, still am dealing with his death. He was my best friend. He took care of me through my many health problems and then was my right hand man in the war. I still have nightmares about that day, seeing him fall to his death and knowing I couldn't do anything about it."

I couldn't keep talking without breaking down again. My gaze fell to the floor as I tried to push back the tears. A hand on my shoulder made me look back up. "Damn, I definitely can say that I haven't gone through what you have but you are just as messed up inside as I am. Just now when you were sleeping; were you having another nightmare?"

My smile didn't reach my eyes. "Yeah that was another nightmare. They're about that day but things always happen differently." I take a little breath before I change the subject. "So can you see how I can help you? Those first few weeks I really thought about ending it all."

Instead of shock on Thomas's face it was understanding, "What changed or do you still think about it?"

"The last time I thought about killing myself was before the alien invasion in New York. Even though I was picked to join the Avengers, I still thought about it. Nobody knows this, but when we all first came together before the attack, we fought. Even though we were mostly influenced because of Loki's staff we all knew that it just enhanced our real feelings we all kept locked away. It wasn't until we were attacked on the SHIELD aircraft that we had some semblance of a team but we were still at odds." I smile. "But, it wasn't until we all had to work together to save this world that I realized we all were friends. A dysfunctional friendship but it was still a good friendship. They made me want to stay alive because I am still a soldier at heart and they were my comrades in battle. It's a very strong bond and I can't leave them behind because I need to protect them."

Thomas seemed to be thinking about it. I give him the time to think as I looked through all my emails. "I'm not sure what you had in mind to help me. People have tried but I still mess up and disappoint them."

He was looking down at his hands and I turned his face so he was looking at me. "Thomas I don't have some complicated plan; I am just going to be your friend. One that you can count on and one that has endless patience. I want you to learn that you don't need to put your recovery on anyone but yourself." I waited twenty minutes of his silence before I stood up, "I am going to let you think on my offer. We only just met and I already feel protective of you so call me when you have your answer. The only thing I ask is that if you agree, when you are going through something or just need to talk that you will be patient with me if I don't answer right away. I do go on missions sometimes and I can't bring my phone." I didn't wait for him to respond; I just turned and headed to the door.

"TJ."

My hand was just on the handle when Thomas's voice stopped me. I turned to him. "What?"

Thomas was looking at me with a smile. "My friends call me TJ."

A genuine smile graced my lips. "TJ. I like that." I moved back to the chair. Now that he was on board it was time to get to know each other.

/

I don't know how long Steve and I talked but one minute we were talking about movies the next Steve was softly snoring in the chair. At first I had a flash of depression, thinking that he thought I was too boring but then the conversation he had with my mom earlier reminded me that he hadn't slept in a while.

After helping to save me, he had to leave on a mission and right after that he came here to see me. Realizing that he really cared about me lifted my spirits and I continued to let him sleep. He deserved it after all he has done not only for me but for the world.

Then reality kicked in; I'm friends with Steve Rogers. I'm friends with Captain America. It just showed how much of a good guy he was, but it was also nice to know that he was not as perfect as the world thinks he was. Just then, the door opened and my mom stepped in. "How was your talk?"

As much as she tried to cover it up she was hoping that it worked. "I agreed to be his friend."

She came around the bed and sat in the other chair. "That was all he wanted to talk about? Just being friends?"

I nod my head. "He said he just wanted to be friends so he can teach me to rely on myself rather than on someone else."

The smile that my mom gave was so full of happiness and relief that I wanted to cry. "I'm so glad to hear that. You never told me what led to what happened last night."

"I am truly sorry mom. I'm sure you can guess what happened. The Vice President blackmailed my boyfriend and he decided to end it so he can't be caught again. But the worse part was that he took all of his words back and denied that he ever loved me." Tears threatened to come out again.

She grabbed my hand and kissed it. "I'm sorry. What both of them did was horrible and I'm sorry you had to deal with that. I hope you know that you still have your family no matter what."

I nod my head. "I do know that but as you know Steve pointed out that I had put all my trust in Sean instead of myself and it backfired. I'm going to try to get better mom because I hate disappointing you."

"You don't disappoint me."

I looked her in the eye. "Don't deny it mom. I have messed up in the past." She didn't respond after that. "I think I'm also going to get some sleep too."

She leaned forward and placed a kiss on my forehead. "Okay baby. Get some sleep so you can get out of here faster."

/

A few days later I was finally released from the hospital and moved back with my parents temporarily. Steve spent so much time at the hospital with me that I was finally faced with the reality that he was serious about this friendship. Then after I was released, I found out that my mom gave him a key to the house. She told me it was because she wanted him to feel at home there but I knew that she did that just in case he had to get into the house for emergencies with me. I wanted to be angry, but after what happened, I knew that this was my own fault and so I couldn't be angry about her precautions.

Right now I really wanted Steve here to talk to, but he texted me telling me that he was on a mission. Being around Steve had almost turned into a drug for me, and I was going through withdraws right now. It was going to be difficult but I was going to have to learn to live without him because if something were to happen to him, the way I was feeling now would only turn me back to drugs.

Steve had told me just before I was released to find something that brought me peace; something healthier that I could turn to when I felt like using again. Right now I was craving something fierce and I had an idea. So I went and found my brother downstairs, "Dougie can you call and hire a private paint tutor?"

He looked confused. "Why don't you call for one?"

"Because I'm afraid if I pick up the phone I will make a different phone call." I pleaded.

Understanding appeared and he pulled out his cell phone. "Why do you want to learn to paint?"

I shrug. "I remember liking it when our tutors at the White House taught me. Piano doesn't make me feel at peace and I want to try something else."

He nodded his head. "Whatever works. I am up for it." After he found some information he called multiple people and asked them to come for an interview. "I want to make sure whoever you get has a clean record and isn't on drugs."

Smiling at him, I pulled him into a hug. "Thank you, Dougie. That was good thinking."

A few hours later the doorbell rang and the security ushered them in and checked for any weapons. Dougie interviewed twenty people and narrowed it down to three. He had them sign papers so they can do a background check on them. Finally, it was well into the evening when the background checks came back faster than normal because of our parent's influence.

Dougie came over to me with the information. "I think I found someone who would be good. His name is Nick Turner and he has a pretty good record. It's clean but not too clean to draw suspicion. I'm going to give him a call and tell him he's hired."

I pull him into another hug. "Thank you again for doing this. Hopefully this makes me feel better."

He squeezed just as tight as me. "I hope so too. We all want you to be happy." We broke apart. "Now I have to get an area set up for you to work with Nick."

/

The next day, Nick came over and met my parents then went on record for the security team. After all of that we went to my designated painting room to get started.

When Nick had easels, paint, and canvas ready he covered the canvas a medium gray with house paint. He set that aside and pulled out an already dry canvas before he turned to me.

"So to start I paint the canvas because it's really hard to paint over white than any other color. I pick gray because it's the easiest but depending on what I am going to paint I sometimes change the color. First I wanted to show you how to do a portrait because it's the hardest thing to do. Then you will work on one yourself with me supervising every once in a while. That is how I am going to teach you for now, until we can discover what you're learning style is. Normally I work with a hired model but since I couldn't bring anyone with me I asked your brother's fiancé to model for us."

He went to the door and opened it. "You can come in now."

Anne stepped in and smiled at me. "I hope this is okay."

I smiled at her. "It's more than okay." We hugged before she walked over to the stool and got settled.

Nick set up some lights until he thought it was right. "First we are going to…" Slowly he showed me how to draw her on the canvas first before starting to paint. During the first hour I saw how he mixed different colors to come up with the skin tone, which, to my surprise, had a little bit of green in it. When the first hour was done he pulled back from the canvas. "Okay I think I might stop there for a bit. I think that Anne needs a break and so do I."

As they both got up to move around I stared at the painting. It was beautiful and I started to doubt that I could possibly make something like that. I turned away from the painting before I decided to do something bad and walked out of the room.

It took less than an hour for Nick to say he was done. The painting was so good that I thought it almost looked like a photograph. Nick must have seen my face and the emotions behind it. "Just so you know not everyone has the same talents. You could discover that you're better than me or that you prefer abstract art. I'm going to introduce you to all of it, and you'll discover what works for you." That made me feel a little better.

/

As I pulled up to the Hammond residence I breathed a heavy sigh. The mission didn't turn out as I liked. The information we got turned out to be a dead end. It only led to a Pharmaceutical drug lab and after searching the whole building, we couldn't find Pandora's box, Natasha's idea for the name, and so we had to turn around and come back. The longer those orbs were out in the world the more nervous it made me feel; thinking about what they were being used for.

I pushed the kickstand down and pulled off my helmet. Slowly, I made my way to the doors. Pulling out my key I was going to unlock the door but the guy on watch duty opened the door for me and I thanked him before I stepped in. I made my way to the living room and came across Elaine and Bud sitting on the couch but not TJ. Elaine saw me. "Steve. I am so glad to see that you're alright."

"Yeah just another day at the office." I laughed as I looked around. "Have you seen TJ?"

"He's upstairs in his painting room."

I look at her with confusion. "His painting room? I didn't know he paints."

She smiled at me. "He didn't before but he took your advice and is trying to find something that brings him peace. Apparently, his school tutors in the White House also taught him some art and he liked it. We just hired someone who is going to tutor him."

Suddenly my protective instinct emerged. "Did you interview him and make sure he isn't a drug addict? Is he here now?"

I turned to leave but Elaine grabbed my arm. "I just love how protective you are of TJ and that definitely reassures me, but we already checked Nick out. He has a clean record and after seeing how TJ looks when he is using, we're able to see the signs. Nick has been thoroughly checked and can be trusted. Plus, he is not here right now. He left an hour ago."

I sigh in relief. "That's good. Sorry didn't mean to assume that you aren't careful. I became more protective of him than I realized." I patted her hand that was still on my arm, "I'm going to go find him now."

She nods. "The room is the third door to the left."

Quickly I make my way upstairs and down the hall. When I reach the room I see that the door is already open and I could hear TJ talking. "Dougie, please can you just help me out. I want to practice before Nick comes back tomorrow and I can't do that without a subject."

"Why don't you get Anne to do it again?" Dougie sounded exasperated.

I round the doorway and lean against the frame to watch the argument. "Anne already sat in that stool for over an hour and I'm sure she doesn't want to do it again. Please Dougie, I don't have anyone else who can do it."

"What about me?" I interrupted before Dougie could argue back.

They both turn to me and TJ's face lights up. "Steve, you made it back in one piece."

I shrug. "Didn't really do much today. It was pretty uneventful. So what do you think? Do you want to paint me?"

Dougie gives me a relieved look before running around me and out of the room. "Looks like you have a new subject."

Laughing, I walk further into the room and sit down on the stool that was to the left of the canvas. "How do you want me to sit?"

I look at him and I can see that he is staring at me in shock. Before I could get his attention, he snaps out of it. "I need you to turn to your left a little, straighten your back, and look at me."

Once I was in position, he moved the lights around until he had them the way he wanted. "Now I'm going to ask you to hold still while I draw a basic picture of you to give me a starting point."

Staying still can sometimes be hard because I want to fidget, but with the serum I can manage well enough. The ability has been used to help me to stay hidden when I needed to. I watched TJ's face as he would look at me and then start to sketch on the canvas. He was so focused that I was sure if I was to suddenly scream he would jump. I held back on the temptation because I could accidently make him mess up the drawing. Instead I waited for the right moment.

A few minutes later he stepped back a little to get a better look and that was when I struck. I let out one quick loud shout and TJ jumped so violently that I started to laugh. I laughed so hard that I ended up falling to the floor.

"That was not funny, Steve. You almost made me pee myself." He sounded so angry but what he said made me laugh harder.

I could hardly breathe. "I'm so sorry, but I just couldn't help myself." My stomach was starting to cramp and I had to calm down soon.

Suddenly I hear TJ laughing too. "You're a dickhead. I swear I'll get you back for that."

Slowly I stopped laughing and caught my breath. When I was finally calm enough, I got back up on the stool. "I haven't laughed like that in a long time."

TJ tried to look angry but I could see that he was happy that he could make me laugh that hard. "Well, if you're done laughing at my expense, can we get back to work?"

Throughout the next few hours' little bursts of giggles would come out whenever I remembered what happened and TJ would glare at me but there was never any heat in it. TJ had asked me if I wanted to break after an hour of me sitting on the stool but I told him I could last a long time. We didn't really talk much because it distracted TJ and he wouldn't making much progress.

Finally, TJ stepped back. "I think that this is as far as I am going to get today. This is oil paint and it takes longer to dry. If we need to work on it more can I count on you being here?" He was looking at me with such hope. Did he really find it difficult that I wasn't completely reliable? How many times had he been let down in his life?

"Of course. Just let me know and we'll make it happen. Even if we have to keep rescheduling it until we find the right time."

I needed to make sure he knew that sometimes people couldn't just drop everything; unless it was an emergency. Plus, life can get in the way sometimes, and he has to realize that and that I can be reliable. "Let me see your work."

He rushed over and stopped me before I could see. "I don't want you to see it yet."

"Why?"

His eyes shifted to the floor. "You could find out that I'm not an artist and be disappointed in what I did."

I cross my arms. "Look at me TJ." He looked up at me for a second before he looked back down. "TJ, I said look at me."

Slowly his eyes lift up to mine and stay there. "What do you want?" There was quite a bit of attitude in that question.

Now he was being defensive, which, according to Elaine, is something that he did whenever he was trying to cover up how nervous or upset he was. "I want you to trust me and that I'm not going to reject you or be disappointed in you. I'm also not going to lie to you either. If I ever criticize you it's to help you and not to be mean. Whatever you have gone through in your life, I want to help rebuild whatever needs to be fixed."

The tension in his shoulders relax and a tear slips past his eye. "I'm sorry, Steve. I guess it's harder to trust than I thought."

I smiled at him and pulled him into a hug. "I understand that more than you know."

We held onto each other for a while, comforting one another. When we finally pull apart, TJ pulled me forward until I could see the painting. I don't know what I was expecting but I definitely couldn't predict just how good it was. The light was soft and it made me look a lot different than how any photo shoot made me look. In those photos, they were highlighting my stronger body to make me look tough. TJ's painting still showed it, but it seemed to reflect how I am on the inside rather than how I reflect on the outside.

"It's amazing TJ. You definitely have a talent and I think you need to pursue it."

TJ's eyes lit up. "Really? You really like it? I wasn't sure how to do your goatee but I think I figured it out."

I laugh and rubbed the beard I was slowly growing. "I guess I have been letting this go. I probably should shave it." I couldn't help but pull him into another hug. "I love the painting. I might even convince the Smithsonian buy it from you and display it."

TJ shakes his head. "Well they can't have it. I am going to keep it."

"Okay, but remember you can't keep everything you make. You should sell some of it and get a lot of money back from it." I pull back from TJ and put my arm around his neck, "Let's get out of here and get something to eat. I'm starving."

TJ put his arm around my shoulder too. "Sounds like a plan to me. We can either get something to eat from the kitchen or we can go out. I'm sure my parents will be okay with it if you come with me."

I steer us out of the room. "We'll ask your parents first but, I like the idea of going out."

***To be continued***

 **P.S. I hope you liked the first chapter and please review to let me know your thoughts on this story.**


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